How Transcreation Works in Translation

Have you ever seen an advertisement for the same product in two different languages? If you have, you’ve no doubt noticed that the words are not translated directly from one language into the other. In fact, it is very likely that the words in the translated version had different meanings from those of the source text. This is because what was used was the process of transcreation.

Whereas translation aims to preserve meaning as closely as possible, the goal of transcreation is to preserve impact. This may even involve rewriting the message.

The word transcreation is a combination of translation and creation. Translators who transcreate don’t start by asking what the words say, they focus on what the message is supposed to make someone feel. They then work on recreating that feeling in the target language and culture.

Transcreation matters in fields where tone, humor, wordplay, or emotional resonance carry the message. We see it at work in advertising slogans, brand taglines, marketing campaigns, video game dialogue, and creative content. Have you ever tried to translate a joke or pun literally? It usually falls flat, doesn’t it? Transcreation solves this problem by treating the source text as a creative brief rather than a fixed script.

In practice, transcreation typically involves a few key steps:

• Understanding intent. Reproducing the same emotion, action, or association that the original text intended to trigger.

• Cultural research. Finding references, humor styles, or idioms that have the same impact in the target culture.

• Creative rewriting. Producing new copy that may look nothing like the original on the page but achieves the same goal.

• Client collaboration. Working closely with brand teams to keep the messaging on target despite changes in the words used.

The result is content that reads as if it were written natively in the target language, not translated into it.

Do you have an ad or other creative content that you would like translated from English to Spanish or vice versa? Reach out and let Powis Language Consultancy put transcreation to work for you.